These DDs are build for surface action. note the torp tubes and lack of ASW.

Somewhat typical of between the wars US design philosophy - some had more guns - some even more torpedoes - but the invention of sonar and the US idea of bigger than world standard DC was thought to be adequate for ASW. These ships fire three patterns - typical of early ships with only a secondary ASW role - each containing big DC. The effect of the pattern - as well as its probability of a hit - is statistically calculated. Japanese destroyers are remarkably similar at this point - also with heavy gun and torpedo armament and only three DC patterns - but they are smaller DC even less likely to damage. DC attacks mostly will damage submarines - not kill them. Death comes from cumulative damage, as a rule - although hitting a mine or being torpedoed or shelled on the surface will get it done in one shot.

Unlike most planes, the Seagul flies very low - and if it wants range - it can fly with "ground effect" -

the champion is probably the Walrus - but there is a similar German plane on the Allied side - the Russian Val - and the ancient E10 is very similar -

note in test game 4A I just had a clear case of an E10 spotting ships at night a relic from before radar, it is designed to fly all night (from a CL) and track target ships and I invented "night vision glasses" for it - but it is the first time I saw them work! You have to look it up in Japanese Aircraft 1910-1941 Naval Institute Press ISBN 1-55750-563-2

Argonaut is a gigantic, specialized minelayer - and this mine is for her (alone). It was beleived this kind of mine - paired with standard ones - would be very hard to sweep. But it was NEVER used.

The Argunaut was converted to a transport - the very first upgrade does that - and you lose these mines. It was decided to go with TT launched rather than special stern launched mines using special tubes. I think it was a mistake - don't convert her - lay mines with her!

She participated in the famous Makin Island Raid as a sort of amphibious ship - with six inch guns!

These DDs are build for surface action. note the torp tubes and lack of ASW.

Somewhat typical of between the wars US design philosophy - some had more guns - some even more torpedoes - but the invention of sonar and the US idea of bigger than world standard DC was thought to be adequate for ASW. These ships fire three patterns - typical of early ships with only a secondary ASW role - each containing big DC. The effect of the pattern - as well as its probability of a hit - is statistically calculated. Japanese destroyers are remarkably similar at this point - also with heavy gun and torpedo armament and only three DC patterns - but they are smaller DC even less likely to damage. DC attacks mostly will damage submarines - not kill them. Death comes from cumulative damage, as a rule - although hitting a mine or being torpedoed or shelled on the surface will get it done in one shot.

do you mean the sub warfare formula in this mod is different from regular AE?

a land unit on Tahiti (base force including militia) a larger one on New Caledonia and an entire regiment of French Foreign Legion at Viet Tri beside Hanoi, its base when the Japanese murdered almost every other French officer (at dinner no less) they missed this unit - on a "training march" and it managed an epic retreat all the way to Kunming - like the Marines at Chosen Resevoir - so it is in the game. Don't move it - it generates enemy units! Indochina has a silly rule that does that when Allied units move in Vietnam - and it works rather differently than the book says - no border hex required! But it does give the Japanese a problem getting all the resources of Indochina - together with the Tonkin Provisional Government (Viet Minh, a static unit farther North). Later they get help from the future Gen Giap - but I digress.

There is a tiny flight of two airplanes on Tahiti.

And several ships - eventually including a battleship - modified in the US so she has no planes (but lots of nice AAA). Richeleiu I think is her name. We have lovely art supplied by Cobra.

On the downside, a French cruiser at Saigon - if it is repaird - might appear on the other side. It was sunk by US bombers to prevent that.

A look at the Chinese fleet: Sid said something about river supply being more effective than road supply.

In two senses:

you have more control of when and where supply (resources, fuel, oil, units) move

and you can move units faster than marching overland.

Riverine naval forces are not as easy to sink as you would guess. And won't happen at all if the enemy isn't trying - allocating planes and ships to that mission. In places far from the enemy the Allies should use rivers as logistic assets - India in particular. In places like Manchuria and China, the rivers might become invasion routes - see Operation August Storm by the Russians in 1945 - or the US and UK joint offensive in Burma at the same time. The Yangtze has a sort of Allied headwater zone - with USN, RN and ROC gunboats and river ships at Chunking dominating it - and a lower Japanese zone - with an Allied sideshow in Central China. It might end up controlled by either side - but usually doesn't. The Yellow River is mostly Allied controlled - Japan has a single good base at Kaifeng - and an outlier that is almost doomed to die in the North. The Yellow river is the only good road in parts of Inner Mongolia - and if you neglect it - you lose resources and useful locations.

Different OOB at Hong Kong. Probably more historical. I also note the chinese army is organized w/ all corps close to group HQs.

HKVDC = Hong Kong Volunteer Defense Corps - and it is static - so part of the coast defense unit But it is pretty big - mg battalions - infantry battalions - support elements - and I think some A/C too. I have been going to HK since the 1960s and know it well - and was married there too. HK people call Dec 25, 1941 "Black Christmas" - it is the day the colonly surrendered to Japan.

There are several major changes to Chinese forces. Additional units of several kinds, including guerilla "regiments" which really are battalion size - and these are semi-independent of LOC - although they benefit from them. In the next turn just posted, I kill two - hard to do - it takes a shock attack at vast odds to get it done - otherwise they just retreat and regenerate. There are more air bases - and more air units - no planes locked in places too far to get somewhere useful. There is a small Navy - the main one on the Yangtze, a tiny one on the Yellow - and a Red one there as well - both Allies - and very small packets on the coast trapped by events - from East China to Indochina. Note the CNAC - which enters US service a few days into the war - has three different hubs and three different kinds of planes (DC-3, DC-2 and Lockheed Model 18) - the former were critical in the early days operating out of India. CNAC is US owned, but Chinese flagged. China also has more industry and is more able to feed itself. I read a complaint in some old thread today about the "free supply" to Kunming: Never mind about that, the home supply is quite enough. The war is fought over China - it is the very reason for the war - and it is rich - worth conquering - or holding. I have put in many of the missing resources and industries - including a factory by the Burma border (at a new location - Low Wing or something like that) which almost got the CW-22 into production - a fabulous fighter also being made in NEI - and which DID make it into remanufacturing damaged P-40s. It starts "damaged" - but unless the Japanese threaten it (by taking Northern Burma as IRL) China will produce its own fighters!

Here above, and in Molokai, Big Red laid CAP traps - numbers of fighters at 20,000 feet. In Hawaii one squadron of Vals was reduced to 5 survivors - never mind they had a dozen zeros in company - because the zeros were unable to cope with 4 times their number - the Allied planes dove on them - just as in real life early in the war.

And a bloody mess down in South Malaya: I wanted to see an opposed landing in range of enemy air - but got more than I wished for!

In the lead group of river vessels trapped at seaports making a run for Chunking - two junks survived unscathed - never mind opposition by a squadron of gunboats and lots of air units. In the South it is similar - some have escaped up the Pearl River - or across the South China Sea. As in real life, looks like the 3 DD at HK will make it - although one took a hit today.

ROC Nan Hai 18 dead in the water ... ROC Nan Hai 13 dead in the water ... ROC Nan Hai 20 dead in the water ... ROC Nan Hai 16 dead in the water ... ROC Nan Hai 14 dead in the water ... ROC Nan Hai 17 dead in the water ...

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Morning Air attack on Hong Kong , at 77,61

CAP engaged: 10 BABr-TOF/19 IAP with SOV I-16 Type 24 (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling) (4 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.) 0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 4 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact. Group patrol altitude is 12000 Time for all group planes to reach interception is 7 minutes 29 IAD/304 IAP with SOV I-16 Type 24 (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling) (4 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.) 0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 4 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact. Group patrol altitude is 12000 Time for all group planes to reach interception is 8 minutes 70 IAD/305 IAP with SOV I-16 Type 24 (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling) (4 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.) 0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 3 being recalled, 1 out of immediate contact. Group patrol altitude is 12000 Time for all group planes to reach interception is 43 minutes 70 IAD/308 IAP with SOV I-16 Type 24 (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling) (1 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.) 0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 1 out of immediate contact. Group patrol altitude is 12000 Time for all group planes to reach interception is 44 minutes

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Afternoon Air attack on Rashin [Chosen] , at 110,46

CAP engaged: 24th PG/17th PS with P-40E Kittyhawk (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling) 0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 1 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact. Group patrol altitude is 12000 Time for all group planes to reach interception is 1 minutes 35th PG/21st PS with P-40E Kittyhawk (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling) 0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 1 out of immediate contact. Group patrol altitude is 12000 Time for all group planes to reach interception is 44 minutes 35th PG/34th PS with P-35A (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling) 0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 1 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact. Group patrol altitude is 12000 Time for all group planes to reach interception is 11 minutes

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Afternoon Air attack on Manila [Luzon] , at 79,77

This permits the industry in the USA to "grow" almost throughout the war. Otherwise one must compromise in the form of too much all the time - or too little later on. Yes - I know it will take a long time. And you don't have to invest in it either, if you prefer supply points to fuel points! It is part of the power to the players philosophy and was proposed by someone in WITP days. It is limited to places where it can be afforded as well as where there was dramatic growth - but it isn't really all there: many more such locations should also grow - it just isn't practical to put it everywhere.

This permits the industry in the USA to "grow" almost throughout the war. Otherwise one must compromise in the form of too much all the time - or too little later on. Yes - I know it will take a long time. And you don't have to invest in it either, if you prefer supply points to fuel points! It is part of the power to the players philosophy and was proposed by someone in WITP days. It is limited to places where it can be afforded as well as where there was dramatic growth - but it isn't really all there: many more such locations should also grow - it just isn't practical to put it everywhere.

I intended to complain about the incursion of Northern Manchukuo at Moho, apparently by a patrol too small to be identified by a unit name.

Then came news of a group raid by JAAF fighters 80 nm into Soviet territory, near Rybolov. Curiously, a smaller number of ancient Russian biplanes achieved a 6:1 loss ratio - impressive even if they had a decisive altitude advantage.

Now I think it is time to order a stand down of all air operations near our common frontier. It is not clear to me how a fighter raid could occur when none was ordered, but possibly tempers are high after the border incursion, and other events of the past three days.

Indeed, it may all have begun with my authorization of recon flights into Russian territory. If I don't respect borders, why should I expect my officers to? If we don't, why should we expect yours to?

Nevertheless, both of our countries face decisive political and military reasons not to allow this situation to escalate out of control. We both face life or death military contests on other fronts, and cannot easily afford to divert massive forces to this one.

Japanese Foreign Minister Togo, a serving IJA general officer, confided to me that "Every night, I go to sleep, worried about the Russians. Every morning, I awake, but have found no solution." I share his skepticism that the plans of staff, to fight an offensive against the USSR with only 14 divisions, is realistic. In my view it would take two or three times that many just to hold Manchukuo. Note, however, we have over 100 divisions, and are adding 50 more - if pressed we could commit that many. It is simply unwise to do so with so much at stake elsewhere. Also note that you would certainly lost the Kamchatka Penninsula, Sakhalin Island and the entire Eastern portion of Siberia from Magadan Eastward, even if we failed to reduce Amur Province or take Central Asia. And the cost in casualties would be catastrophic for both sides.

Although I have generally been removing troops from the border - in some cases reducing the front line position by half - replacing them with construction of fortifications - and airfields to the rear of them, you will understand if I dispatch a small cavalry formation to Moho - to restore the flag and prevent another raid there by patrols. I do not propose at this time to change my policy of not massing on the borders.

I suggest we stand down recon operations for a few days, during which we negotiate an acceptable probe rate - on the basis that information builds confidence troops are not massing to invade. During that time we can review how units orders are given to attempt to insure no repeat of today's events.

Then came news of a group raid by JAAF fighters 80 nm into Soviet territory, near Rybolov. Curiously, a smaller number of ancient Russian biplanes achieved a 6:1 loss ratio - impressive even if they had a decisive altitude advantage.

These incursions by your forces will nor be tolerated. The air battle demonstrates superior qualities of Russian men and materials. In addition, this experience shows a complete lack of command and control on your part. We will not stand down. We also do not respect your idle threats. Take your planes and control your men.